Israeli bus drivers plan strike after terror shooting

The bus drivers at bus company Egged Transport announced that they would be going on strike Monday to protest the gunfire attack on a bus in which a driver was lightly wounded.

By World Israel News Staff

The bus drivers at Egged Transport announced that they will go on strike Monday to protest the gunfire attack on a bus in which a driver was lightly wounded Saturday night.

The drivers will already stop all work at a branch near the shooting on Sunday afternoon.

The company management announced that the driver union’s declaration of a strike was illegal, since the matter has not been recognized as a labor dispute.

“We call upon the workers to display responsibility and seriousness and to publicly apologize to the passengers for spreading inaccurate information that could affect their daily routine,” management said.

The shots were fired a short time after midnight at Egged Bus 140 that connects Jerusalem with Bet El. The windshield of the bus was damaged and the driver suffered light wounds from glass shards.

“This is the second time in two months that a driver has been wounded by gun fire on this route,” said Raed Masha’al, Chairman of Egged’s transport drivers union, “and no solutions have been found… We have warned repeatedly about the need for installing protective armor for the vehicles  [on this line] but no one listened to us.”

IDF forces have begun a massive search operation seeking the terrorists behind the ambush. They have set up roadblocks on the roads leading to the town of El Bireh and to the village of Bitin, next to Bet El, as well as the nearby portions of Highway 60.

Three terror attacks involving gunfire took place in the same area in the past month. Some of the terrorists suspected of involvement in the terror attacks have been either caught or eliminated.